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Papageorgiou D, Cherono W, Gall G, Nyaguthii B, Farine DR. Testing the information centre hypothesis in a multilevel society. J Anim Ecol 2024; 93:1147-1159. [PMID: 38961615 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Accepted: 05/22/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
In various animal species conspecifics aggregate at sleeping sites. Such aggregations can act as information centres where individuals acquire up-to-date knowledge about their environment. In some species, communal sleeping sites comprise individuals from multiple groups, where each group maintains stable membership over time. We used GPS tracking to simultaneously record group movement in a population of wild vulturine guineafowl (Acryllium vulturinum) to investigate whether communal sleeping sites can facilitate the transfer of information among individuals across distinct groups. These birds live in large and stable groups that move both together and apart, often forming communal roosts containing up to five groups. We first test whether roosts provide the opportunity for individuals to acquire information from members of other groups by examining the spatial organization at roosts. The GPS data reveal that groups intermix, thereby providing an opportunity for individuals to acquire out-group information. We next conduct a field experiment to test whether naïve groups can locate novel food patches when co-roosting with knowledgeable groups. We find that co-roosting substantially increases the chances for the members of a naïve group to discover a patch known to individuals from other groups at the shared roost. Further, we find that the discovery of food patches by naïve groups subsequently shapes their space use and inter-group associations. We also draw on our long-term tracking to provide examples that demonstrate natural cases where communal roosting has preceded large-scale multi-group collective movements that extend into areas beyond the groups' normal ranges. Our findings support the extension of the information centre hypothesis to communal sleeping sites that consist of distinct social groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danai Papageorgiou
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Collective Behavior, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Konstanz, Germany
- College for Life Sciences, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Gabriella Gall
- Zukunftskolleg, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
- Department for the Ecology of Animal Societies, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Brendah Nyaguthii
- Mpala Research Center, Nanyuki, Kenya
- Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Damien R Farine
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Collective Behavior, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Konstanz, Germany
- Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
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Patricelli GL. Behavioral ecology: New technology enables a more holistic view of complex animal behavior. PLoS Biol 2023; 21:e3002264. [PMID: 37619242 PMCID: PMC10449220 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
As any animal observer will tell you, behavior is complex. A more holistic view of this complexity is emerging as technological advances enable the study of spatiotemporal variability and expand the focus from single components to behavioral systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gail L. Patricelli
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, California, United States of America
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Crates R, Stojanovic D, Heinsohn R. The phenotypic costs of captivity. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2023; 98:434-449. [PMID: 36341701 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2022] [Revised: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The breeding of threatened species in captivity for release is a central tool in conservation biology. Given gloomy predictions for biodiversity trends in the Anthropocene, captive breeding will play an increasingly important role in preventing future extinctions. Relative to the wild, captive environments drastically alter selection pressures on animals. Phenotypic change in captive animals in response to these altered selection pressures can incur fitness costs post-release, jeopardising their potential contribution to population recovery. We explore the ways in which captive environments can hinder the expression of wild phenotypes. We also stress that the phenotypes of captive-bred animals differ from their wild counterparts in multiple ways that remain poorly understood. We propose five new research questions relating to the impact of captive phenotypes on reintroduction biology. With better use of monitoring and experimental reintroductions, a more robust evidence base should help inform adaptive management and minimise the phenotypic costs of captivity, improving the success of animal reintroductions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ross Crates
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Linnaeus Way, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Dejan Stojanovic
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Linnaeus Way, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Robert Heinsohn
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Linnaeus Way, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
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Berberi I, Miller ET, Dakin R. The effect of sociality on competitive interactions among birds. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20221894. [PMID: 36855867 PMCID: PMC9975650 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.1894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Sociality can provide many benefits, including increased foraging success, reproductive opportunities and defence against predation. How does sociality influence the dominance hierarchies of ecological competitors? Here, we address this question using a large citizen science dataset of competitive interactions among birds foraging at backyard feeders, representing a network of over 55 000 interactions among 68 common species. We first show that species differ in average group size (the number of conspecifics observed together) as a fundamental measure of sociality. When analysing heterospecific competition, we find that sociality is inversely related to dominance. On average, a single individual from a solitary species is more likely to displace a size-matched opponent than a single individual from a social species. Yet, we find that social species gain an increase in their competitive advantage when in the presence of their conspecifics, which may occur as a result of dynamics within their groups. Finally, we show that more social species have relatively fewer dominance interactions with heterospecifics, and more with conspecifics. Overall, these results demonstrate that sociality can influence competition in ecological networks. More social species have decreased competitive ability as individuals, but they may gain competitive ability in groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilias Berberi
- Department of Biology, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, Canada K1S 5B6
| | - Eliot T. Miller
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA
| | - Roslyn Dakin
- Department of Biology, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, Canada K1S 5B6
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Camerlenghi E, Nolazco S, Farine DR, Magrath RD, Peters A. Multilevel social structure predicts individual helping responses in a songbird. Curr Biol 2023; 33:1582-1587.e3. [PMID: 36898373 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.02.050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023]
Abstract
Multilevel societies are formed when stable groups of individuals spatially overlap and associate preferentially with other groups, producing a hierarchical social structure.1 Once thought to be exclusive to humans and large mammals, these complex societies have recently been described in birds.2,3 However, it remains largely unclear what benefits individuals gain by forming multilevel societies.1 One hypothesis-based on food sharing in hunter-gatherers4-is that multilevel societies facilitate access to a range of cooperative relationships, with individual investment varying across the hierarchical levels of the society. We tested experimentally whether such graded cooperation occurs in the multilevel society of a songbird, the superb fairy-wren (Malurus cyaneus). Specifically, we measured whether responses to playbacks of distress calls-used to recruit help when in extreme danger-varied according to the social level at which the focal individual is connected with the caller. We predicted that anti-predator responses should be highest within breeding groups (the core social unit), intermediate between groups from the same community, and lowest across groups from different communities. Our results confirm that birds exhibit the predicted hierarchical pattern of helping and that, within breeding groups, this pattern is independent of kinship. This pattern of graded helping responses supports the hypothesis that multilevel social structures can sustain stratified cooperative relationships and reveals similarity in cooperation in qualitatively different behaviors-anti-predator behavior and food sharing-in the multilevel societies of songbirds and humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ettore Camerlenghi
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Rainforest Walk 25, Clayton, Victoria, Australia.
| | - Sergio Nolazco
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Rainforest Walk 25, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Damien R Farine
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland; Department of Collective Behavior, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, 78464 Konstanz, Germany; Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 46 Sullivan's Creek Road, Canberra 2600, Australia
| | - Robert D Magrath
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 46 Sullivan's Creek Road, Canberra 2600, Australia
| | - Anne Peters
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Rainforest Walk 25, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
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Brambilla A, von Hardenberg A, Canedoli C, Brivio F, Sueur C, Stanley CR. Long term analysis of social structure: evidence of age‐based consistent associations in male Alpine ibex. OIKOS 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.09511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alice Brambilla
- Dept of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, Univ. of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
- Alpine Wildlife Research Center, Gran Paradiso National Park Torino Italy
| | - Achaz von Hardenberg
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Chester Chester UK
| | - Claudia Canedoli
- Dept of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Univ. of Milano Bicocca Milano Italy
| | | | - Cédric Sueur
- Univ. de Strasbourg, CNRS, IPHC UMR 7178 Strasbourg France
- Inst. Universitaire de France, Saint‐Michel 103 Paris France
| | - Christina R. Stanley
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Chester Chester UK
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Static and dynamic methods in social network analysis reveal the association patterns of desert-dwelling giraffe. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-022-03167-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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Camerlenghi E, McQueen A, Delhey K, Cook CN, Kingma SA, Farine DR, Peters A. Cooperative breeding and the emergence of multilevel societies in birds. Ecol Lett 2022; 25:766-777. [PMID: 35000255 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Revised: 10/24/2021] [Accepted: 11/18/2021] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Multilevel societies (MLSs), where social levels are hierarchically nested within each other, are considered one of the most complex forms of animal societies. Although thought to mainly occurs in mammals, it is suggested that MLSs could be under-detected in birds. Here, we propose that the emergence of MLSs could be common in cooperatively breeding birds, as both systems are favoured by similar ecological and social drivers. We first investigate this proposition by systematically comparing evidence for multilevel social structure in cooperative and non-cooperative birds in Australia and New Zealand, a global hotspot for cooperative breeding. We then analyse non-breeding social networks of cooperatively breeding superb fairy-wrens (Malurus cyaneus) to reveal their structured multilevel society, with three hierarchical social levels that are stable across years. Our results confirm recent predictions that MLSs are likely to be widespread in birds and suggest that these societies could be particularly common in cooperatively breeding birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ettore Camerlenghi
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Alexandra McQueen
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia.,Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria, Australia
| | - Kaspar Delhey
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Carly N Cook
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Sjouke A Kingma
- Department of Animal Sciences, Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Damien R Farine
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland.,Department of Collective Behavior, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Anne Peters
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
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